(Photo Credit: Rant Sports)
Fair or not, coaches or managers take the blame when a professional team is losing. That comes with the territory when it comes to professional sports. The spotlight is on first-year Rockies manager Walt Weiss with the team being in a freefall.
The Rockies lost four in a row after the Braves swept them in an 11-2 blowout victory Thursday night at Turner Field. This loss puts the team season-high eight games under .500. Making the playoffs is a pipe dream along with having a winning record.
The fans have expressed their frustration on Weiss in recent weeks, and understandably so. Weiss appears lost in the dugout. He does not seem like he has an idea what to do when the team is losing. He can’t seem to rally up the guys when the team is losing or in danger of losing a ballgame. The guys haven’t played hard for him in recent weeks. There is poor baserunning and undisciplined hitting. There are lapses at times with the fielders.
What’s worse is Weiss has no idea why his team is struggling. He has no answers, and he doesn’t seem to hold guys accountable. He is not managing with a sense of urgency. He gives utterless clichés, and he is not getting through with the players. He does not seem to have any emotion after a loss. That type of attitude filters through the players.
An important trait of a manager is to have passion. He has to show he cares enough about winning, and that he puts his time on the job. He has to believe his guys can win games. He has to push players into excellence. That’s what made Clint Hurdle effective as the Rockies manager. He had guys believing they can compete with elite teams. Now, the Rockies did not win many games, but at least, they competed out there. Weiss can’t say the same thing.
The Rockies have not snapped out of their slump for weeks, and this season has become a lost cause as a result of it. It’s easy to wonder if the guys have quit on Weiss after watching the last four games. They certainly are not playing with a sense of urgency, and they mailed it in against the Braves this series.
It’s easy to wonder if Weiss has his player’s attention after Troy Tulowitzki decided he wanted to be tossed last night after arguing balls and strikes after the second inning despite the fact Carlos Gonzalez and Michael Cuddyer did not play in this game. Tulowitzki knows he can’t be arguing while his team is shorthanded. There comes a time where he has to realize it’s not worth it even if he had good intentions. He can’t put his manager in that position. A leader of a team knows right from wrong, and it sure seems like he and Weiss are not on the same page. If he had Weiss’ attention, he wouldn’t be arguing.
There’s also a question about Weiss paying attention in games. Last night was a good example when he was in the dugout as Tulowitzki was arguing with the home plate umpire for a good three minutes. It took Rockies first base coach Rene Lachemann to intervene, but it was too little too late. That is Weiss’ responsibility to prevent his player being tossed. He should have been out of the dugout and argue on his star’s behalf.
The rule of thumb is if a star player is tossed, the manager follows suit or argues on his star’s behalf. Weiss did not do either of that. That’s a fireable offense for a manager.
It will be interesting how Weiss deals with Tulowitzki after this. The Rockies shortstop is not one to forget stuff like this. He has pride, and he cares about winning. This has to bother him that his manager did not back him up. That’s an easy way for a manager to lose his star player. No one can blame Tulowitzki, too. Any star player would behave that way.
It’s surprising Weiss never argued on his star’s behalf. If he had to do it again, he probably would. This does not help Weiss’ cause, and it’s a good bet he may have lost his players for good after not arguing for Tulowitzki. If he does not lose them now, he will at the end of the month if the Rockies continue their freefall.
Weiss is on a one-year deal. The thought was he was going to manage the club even if his contract expires makes sense.
All bets are off now with the way things are going. Odds are good this could be a one and out deal for him. It could be Weiss may have enough of managing, and that he can go back to what he enjoys most, which is dealing with his high school players. Who can blame him when he is over his head as a manager? Who can blame him when he works for a management team that has no idea how to run a baseball team?
He could be dead man walking when all is said and done. The next two months could determine whether he manages the Rockies next season. That’s the only intrigue of what has been a lost season.
Everything went right for Weiss when the Rockies were off to a 13-4 start to start the 2013 season. The team executed fundamentals well such as playing defense, throwing strikes and generating offense. The team was playing to its potential.
Making the playoffs is a pipe dream along with having a winning record.
Leslie Monteiro
Leslie is a contributor for Lightning Rod Sports. He covered high school sports in Bergen County out in North Jersey, and has written op-ed columns on sports such as Bleacher Report and NY Sports Digest.
Walt makes Terry Collins look adequate.
Agree. Mets have not quit on Terry. Walt can’t say the same about his players.
Walt took a team with great prospects this year. Straight. To hell.